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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 2,256 Likes: 2
Coach
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Coach
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 2,256 Likes: 2 |
I sure as heck hope so...otherwise we've been going about this all the wrong way! 
I've got good news and bad news...
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Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 5,659
world cup
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world cup
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 5,659 |
I would imagine that if you are not ready, over-scheduling could cause you problems.
Kids play sports because they find it fun. Eliminate the fun and soon you eliminate the kid.
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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 2,256 Likes: 2
Coach
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Coach
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 2,256 Likes: 2 |
Quote:
Playing better teams doesn't make you better?
Again, I'm interpreting and may be off base, but I think what BD is trying to say is that playing top-notch teams in one preseason tournament doesn't make as much difference in team development as consistently playing strong teams throughout the season and maintaining good year-round conditioning and competition.
I also suspect a team's success in a strong preseason tournament like the VC may also be related to the number of players who are coming off of a fall club season of strong competition...which, again, would make the VC a great indicator of developed talent, but not necessarily the developer.
Still, it would be the first opportunity for players returning to a high school team from separate clubs to learn to gel together again in a high-pressure situation, which could actually benefit them in the first games of the regular season--although most teams start their seasons with out-of-region matches for this very reason, so that unity is achieved by the time region play and playoff seedings become an issue anyway.
At any rate, it seems logical that a team that starts out winning in the VC (such as the earlier example of Wando) has already achieved a superior level of development from the get-go. If you want to talk about how the VC can MAKE teams better, let's talk about teams who do "fair to middlin'" in the VC and use it as a growth tool to get stronger as the regular season develops.
I've got good news and bad news...
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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 2,256 Likes: 2
Coach
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Coach
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 2,256 Likes: 2 |
Yeah, I'll have to admit, I wouldn't always pick 'em the way they're handed to us...but no doubt the "get better or get embarrassed" factor is a powerful motivator. We are not a highly-experienced, club-fed team...but I think we are much better for having played a schedule with Wando, West Ashley, James Island, Summerville, and the like than we would be if we hadn't played them.
I've got good news and bad news...
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Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 4,768
World Cup
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World Cup
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 4,768 |
My first two years at Hanna were 10-11-1 and 7-13. Not always the happiest of days. We would be put out in round 1. The next two years we went 14-5 and 17-5, out the first round, but the easier scheduling got the girls more excited about soccer and gave us some credibility. Had we scheduled harder, maybe we would have been a little better prepared for playoffs...but I don't think it would have set the program in the right direction. Girls need to be happy.
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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 2,256 Likes: 2
Coach
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Coach
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 2,256 Likes: 2 |
Definitely agree with that...most players on developing teams will put a lot more into it and get more out of it when they enjoy what they're doing and can see some success and accomplishment. I think we're fortunate at this point to have a mix on our schedule of teams we can be competitive with and strong, upper-level teams that give us something to stretch for. I think they get just as much kick out of making top-notch teams have to work a little for what they get as they do out of winning games against other teams. They know that many schools on our development level fluctuate from year to year in team strength, but strong programs (Wando, for example) tend to maintain that high standard, and how well we perform under that kind of pressure is a good measure of our progress from year to year. Sometimes it's easier to see and measure your movement across a broad gap than a narrow one. Used to be, my girls dreaded playing Wando twice every season...now they look forward to it--not because they expect to win (yet!  ) but because it gives them a sense of where they are compared to some of the best in the state. The first match is a test of how hard they can make a great team work for their goals, and the second is a challenge to see a visible improvement over the first. It's usually the best, hardest, most inspired soccer they play all season. In contrast, we played a few games over the last couple of years that were pretty easy wins without too much effort...and those wins were some of the worst, most uninspiring, anticlimactic games of the season--the girls really weren't having fun, and they weren't too happy about themselves afterward. So yeah...as far as building a program is concerned, girls do need to be happy to play their best, and I think balance is the way to go in that...a schedule that allows them to be competitive and pull out some wins they can be proud of, but at the same time give them something to stretch for as well, and the ability to be proud of the stretching itself, even if it hasn't yet turned into winning.
I've got good news and bad news...
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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 15
bench
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OP
bench
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 15 |
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My first two years at Hanna were 10-11-1 and 7-13. Not always the happiest of days. We would be put out in round 1. The next two years we went 14-5 and 17-5, out the first round, but the easier scheduling got the girls more excited about soccer and gave us some credibility. Had we scheduled harder, maybe we would have been a little better prepared for playoffs...but I don't think it would have set the program in the right direction. Girls need to be happy.
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"Girls need to be happy"
What are you talking about?
Girls needs to be put in a competitive environment on a daily basis, and understand winning and losing are a part of the game and part of life.
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Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 4,768
World Cup
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World Cup
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 4,768 |
So girls don't need to be happy and enjoy what they're doing? Ohhhhhhhhhh boy good luck with that one! That chuckle is going to last all day...
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,521
hat-trick
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hat-trick
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,521 |
Soccer rocks,
What school are you affiliated with?
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Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 315
corner kick
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corner kick
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 315 |
I think you need to have a mix of both stiff competition and some winnable games at the beginning of the season. After last season, I can see that it is important to have a good start.
Speaking of making girls happy, I just had a couple of my players ask for a schedule so that they could go ahead and schedule their tanning bed appointments!!?? Boy do I love coaching girls!!
Dale, I can guarantee you one thing..we may lose to you again this year...but we will be well-tanned.
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